


When It Rains, It Pours

by hotmess_yes (orphan_account)



Category: Twenty One Pilots
Genre: Anxiety, Cuddling, Fear of Thunderstorms, Fluff, Gen, M/M, Nightmares, Panic Attacks, Roommates, Thunderstorms, again interpret as you wish, but interpret it as you wish, i suck at tags sorry, it's just a really fluffy dynamic, it's really more ambiguous, platonic, platonic fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-21
Updated: 2017-02-21
Packaged: 2018-09-26 00:54:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9854780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/hotmess_yes
Summary: | Thunderstorm AU | Josh has always been afraid of thunderstorms, but he especially dreads them when they happen at night. Tyler is his roommate, whom he still doesn't know too well. Josh usually wouldn't bring himself to bother Tyler during times like these. But... tonight was different. |





	

**Author's Note:**

> I was gonna take the easy route and name this story with lyrics from 'the run and go' or 'holding onto you'  
> but I decided to take the the easier route and name this after a popular saying woo
> 
> josh's pov btw  
> (I tend to write in tyler's pov but i'm really feeling josh's right now)  
> also this turned out longer than anticipated woops

I had been afraid of thunderstorms since I was ten years old. Growing up, it wasn't unusual to find me hiding underneath the covers of my bed or sleeping in the bathtub whenever a thunderstorm came through. Knowing my family was right there in the house with me made it a little better. But ever since my parents had told me it was high time I got a place of my own, thunderstorms proved to be pure and utter hell for me.

 

I wasn't _entirely_ on my own, though. I had a roommate; his name was Tyler. He was the same age as me and a generally pretty nice guy, if you asked me. But I didn't know him too well and I wasn't going to embarrass myself by admitting that I, a twenty-eight-year-old dude, was _still_ afraid of thunderstorms.

 

So, here it was, twenty minutes after midnight, with a thunderstorm raging outside that was part of a cold front moving through the area. The last time I checked, the storms weren't supposed to end until the early morning hours, so I already knew I was in for a _long_ night.

 

And with all of this lightning and wind, the covers weren't doing jack for me right now.

 

I really didn't want to bother Tyler. I didn't even know if he was even still awake.

 

Who was I kidding? I knew he was awake. It may have only been a few months since we had became roommates, but I hadn't forgotten the few times that I had woke up in the middle of the night to get a drink of water and noticed that his bedroom light was still on. I had wondered what he was still doing up at such a late hour, but I just chalked it up to him being an “extreme” night owl.

 

Pulling the covers off of my body, I got up out of the bed and crept out of my room. Making my way down the hallway, my hand hesitated over the door as I debated on whether to knock or not.

 

A loud crack of a lightning bolt sent a wave of panic over me, and any previous hesitation that I had went out the window. I rapped on the door lightly. “Tyler? It's Josh.”

 

A few moments later, the sound of footsteps came up to the door before the knob turned and slowly opened. Tyler stood in the doorway and I suddenly felt about two feet tall in his presence. “Uh... hi,” I mumbled.

 

“Hey Josh,” he said, sounding way too calm for what was going on right now. “You can come in.”

 

“Thanks.” Scooting past him, I walked inside and took a seat at the foot of his bed. Soft music played from the speakers on his night stand, putting me at ease. “Sorry for bothering you, man.”

 

“You aren't bothering me.” Tyler stretched and I noticed that he was wearing a floral kimono and pajama pants. Well, _that_ was new. “I'm just surprised you're still awake. You're usually asleep by now.”

 

Guess he wasn't the only one being watched in this house. “Yeah, you're right, I usually am, but...” My voice trailed off as I listened to the rain hitting the window. It didn't seem as loud in his room as it did in mine, despite the fact that our rooms were only a few hundred feet away from each other. “This storm, you know?”

 

Tyler smiled. “Just a typical rainy night for me. Having music on makes it even more melodic.”

 

The words 'thunderstorm' and 'melodic' did not go together at _all._ “I beg to differ,” I mumbled, looking down at the carpet.

 

“Josh?” I looked up and saw the concerned look on Tyler's face. “You okay? You look terrified.”

 

Scratching at my arm, I let out a sigh. This was turning into a really bad idea. “I'm not a big fan of, uh, thunderstorms. I'm deathly afraid of them, actually.”

 

He frowned. “Aww, I'm sorry Josh. I didn't know that.”

 

I looked down. “I don't want to bother you, Tyler.”

 

“We're roommates, man. We share the same breathing space. You can tell me anything.” He walked over to his bed and pulled the covers back, before getting underneath them. “You can join me, if it'll make you feel better.”

 

I looked at him, then at the covers, and then back up to him. “Are you sure?”

 

He patted the spot next to him and motioned his head for me to come over. “Positive.”

 

I let out a shaky sigh and nodded. Maneuvering myself over his legs, I crawled over to the top of the bed and slipped underneath the covers. Awkwardness taking over me, I kept my arms tightly to my side and tried to stay as still as possible. “Uh, thanks, Tyler.”

 

He started to laugh, shaking his head. “I'm not going to bite you, Josh. You can touch me, hold me, whatever you want to do. And if you're uncomfortable with something, just say so.”

 

My breath caught in my throat. “I'm fine. Can you, ah, hold me?”

 

“Of course.” He scooted closer to me and slipped his arm underneath my shoulder, holding me close to him. His breath tickled my forehead as he leaned his head against mines. “This okay?”

 

I nodded, feeling myself start to relax a little. “Perfect, actually.” Looking up at him, our eyes met. “This isn't weird for you?” I asked.

 

Tyler shrugged. “Not really. I like cuddling. Affection doesn't always have to be a romantic thing.”

 

“Huh.” Well, jeez, wish I had known this sort of thing sooner. Platonic cuddling would have made some of those past lonely nights a _whole_ lot easier. Especially on thunderstorm nights like these. “I didn't know that.”

 

“Maybe you should come out of your room more often.” He placed a playful tap on my nose with his finger.

 

I laughed a little. “Maybe I should.”

 

Suddenly, the whole room lit up with white heat, followed by an ear-splitting boom, shaking the walls and the windows. Ducking my head into the crook of Tyler's neck, I whimpered.

 

“Jeez, that scared me,” I murmured into his skin. “Sorry, I'm a big baby.'

 

“You're not a baby. Everyone has their fears. I have my own,” Tyler said. He buried his fingers into my hair, softly caressing the red mess it was. “You're shaking,” he whispered, tightening his grip on me.

 

I shook my head and let out a shaky sigh. “Feels like I'm ten years old all over again.”

 

Tyler leaned his head down and pressed a haphazard kiss to my forehead. “That's when the nightmares started for me.”

 

I pulled my face out of his neck and looked at him, frowning. “Nightmares? You mean, you...?”

 

“Some nights, the medicine makes me pass out and I don't remember the dreams,” he said, eyes drifting to the ceiling. “But there are other nights where I am too terrified to even go to sleep. So I stay up.”

 

“Tyler. Why didn't you tell me sooner?”

 

He raised an eyebrow. “Why didn't _you_ tell me sooner?”

 

“Because it felt...”

 

“...silly? Immature? Stupid?” he finished. “Yeah, I know the feeling.”

 

I let my head fall back onto his shoulder. “I appreciate your honesty.”

 

His lips curved into a small smile. “And I appreciate your body heat. You have a vibe about you, Josh; I don't know, it just puts me at ease.”

 

Feeling a wave of affection wash over me, I finally took my arms away from my sides. Turning on my side to face him, I placed my hand on his stomach, relishing the feeling of the silk underneath my fingertips. “This okay?” I asked.

 

He smiled and for the first time, his whole face relaxed. “Perfect, actually.”

 

And that's how we stayed for the rest of the night, as the wind started to calm down and our conversation slowly faded away into restful slumber.

 

Tyler didn't wake up once.

 

**Author's Note:**

> I was feeling a "dominant" side to tyler so this is what it happened  
> (idk if you would call it dominant but I can't word right now)  
> thanks so much for reading!!


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